Thermal interchanging process.



J. I. LYLE.

THERMAL INTERUHANGING PROCESS.

APPLIGATION FILED mumz, 1912.

1,072,1 33. Patented Sept. 2, 1913.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOEL IRVINE LYLE, 0F PLAINFIELD, NEW JERSEY.

THERMAL INTERCHANGING PROCESS.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOEL IRVINE LYLE, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Plainfield, county of Union, and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Thermal Interchanging Processes, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates generally to a process for regulating the moisture content of air and particularly air under pressure, by reducing the temperature -of the air to the point at which when saturated it will contain the required amount of moisture per cubic foot of space occupied, and the main object of my invention is to decrease the cost of carrying out such a process. Such a process is useful in many relations and particularly in connection with air supplied in metallurgical processes. For use in such processes it is always desirable that the air be supplied at a high temperature, hence it is immaterial to what extent the temperature of the air be raised after the moisture content has been determined therein, it being understood that it is necessarv to reduce the temperature of the air at some point in the process to which this invention relates, to a relatively low degree, in order that such moisture content be fixed at the required amount, because it is at such a low degree that fully saturated air will carry just the required amount of moisture.

I avail myself of the foregoing by utilizing the air, after it has been reduced as required to the necessary low temperature, for the purpose of absorbing heat from the incoming air and by this means I reduce the amountof refrigerating fluid required for the final cooling step. To effect the foregoing I conveniently employ a. counter-current apparatus in which incoming air is delivered in one direction through one part of the apparatus to the refrigerating means, the refrigerated air being delivered back through another part of the counter-current apparatus, along channels in close proxunity to the path of incoming air, the incoming and returning air preferably passing in opposite directions, whereby a thermal interchange will be effected as will be well understood.

In my process the friction produced by the passage of the air is very slight and the Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed March 22, 1912.

Patented Sept. 2, 1913.

Serial No. 685,426.

resistance to its passage is minimized. The control of my process, as regards temperature and moisture content of the air is very simple and easily accomplished, as the amount and temperature of cold liquid brought in contact with the air can be regulated.

The methodof cooling the air in my process gives a perfect exchange of heat between the air and liquid, due to spraying the liquid in an atomized form. This also gives a greater transmission of heat, as it is well known, that, heat will be transmitted more rapidly when brought in contact with a liquid than when brought in contact with a cooling surface.

In order that my invention may be thoroughly understood, I will now proceed to describe my improved process and one form of apparatus in which the same may be car ried out, having reference to the accompanying drawing which illustrates in partial side elevation and partial central vertical longitudinal section an apparatus for carrying out my process.

The apparatus comprises, in general, a blowing engine 1, a fore-cooler 2, a countercurrent apparatus 3, and a dew point cooler l. The fore-cooler 2 is here shown in the form of a tubular chamber 5 having conical ends 6, one of which connects directly with the blowing engine and constitutes the inlet end, While the other end connects with the counter-current apparatus and constitutes the discharge end of the fore-cooler. Located in the central chamber thereof are a plurality of pipes 7 provided with spraying nozzles, the said pipes forming branch connections from a main supply pipe 8, and near the discharge end of the fore-cooler, conveniently in the immediate proximity of the rear conical portion 6, are a series of eliminator plates 9. The dew-point cooler 4 is similar in construction and arrangement to the fore-cooler except that it is shown as reversely disposed with respect to the fore-cooler, that is to say, its inlet end connects with the counter-current apparatus. The opposite or discharge end thereof connects with a pipe 10 which leads around to the bottom of the counter-current apparatus and connects with the tubes constituting the return channel thereof as will presently ap ear. The dew-point cooler has an independent supply'pipe 20 for the admisa rent apparatus, as shown, so that the fore-.

. the fore-"cooler.

sion of: water which has been artificially cooled, and I supply the term dew-point cooler to this part of the apparatusbecause it istherem that I reduce the temperature of the air to the required tempera ture at the dew-point or'point of coinplete-saturat-ion whereof, the desired amount of moisture is obtained. 'lhe':counter-current apparatus Comprises a; tubular shell 11 having conical lower and upper heads 12 13. In proximity to the said upper and lower heads are upper and lower dia hragms l land 15 which serve as supports ior a plurality of vertical tubes 16, and 'intermediate the said upper and lower diaphragms l4 and'15 are a plurality-of alternately disposed baffle plates 17 -18, the

former having central openings and the latter having openings between the edges thereof and the outer shell walls. 1 The lower head 12 of the counter-current; apparatus connects with the discharge end of the pipe of conduit '10 while the upper head 13 connects with a delivery pipe or conduit 19.

The fore-cooler and dew-point cooler con-' nect respectively with the upper and lower ends of the shell portion of the counter-curair is of course heated in the process of compression in the blowing engine and is delivered directly in its heated condition to While in the fore-cooler it is subjected to a series of sprays of cold Water delivered from the supply pipe 8 through the nozzles in the branches 7. Assuming that the blowing engine compresses the air to from 10 to 20 pounds pressure above the pressure of th atmosphere, the compressed air will be delivered to the forecooler at a temperature, say, from 175 to 190 degrees Fahrenheit. The water admit-.

ted to the fore-cooler may be Artesian or other well water, river water, city water, or

other water available from' natural :sources' and being at about atmospheric temperature. While in the winter time th temperature ofthis watermay be quite low, its temperature in the summer may readily. rise "up,

to say, SOdegrees, so that assuming a temperature of degrees, thejair passing through the, fore-coolermay be readily re duced by the action of the water to, say,-

about degrees. 'The eliminator plates!) will remove any entrained particles of the marshes;

water, i. e., free water which is not contained in the air .in a state of vapor. The partially cooled air under pressure will now be delivered to the shell portion'of the countercurre'nt apparatus and will. descend therethrough downward; around the vertical tubes 16 'and will be delivered therefrom to the I dew-point cooler 4. In this cooler artificially cooled water will be admitted through the" supply pipe 20 therein provided, the temperature at, which the water is admitted being governed first, by the temperature to which the air is cooled in the fore-cooler, and second, by the temperature to which it I is desired to reduce the 'air in the dew-point cooler.-

Assuming that the air is delivered to the dew-point cooler at, say, 75,degrees (it being presently shown that a reduction of the temperature of the air delivered from the fore-cooler takes place in the counter-current apparatus 3, which may be assumed to be,

say 10 degrees), and that the desired temperature to which the air is to be reduced in the dew-point cooler is,say, 50 degrees, the artificially cooled water admitted to the dew-point cooler may be at a temperature of, say, 37 degrees. The air passing through the dew-point cooler and subjected therein to the direct act-ion of the water at such a low temperature will be cooled to the desired temperature of 50 degrees and completely saturated, a set of eliminator plates 9 again entrapping any free water and restrainingv the same from being carried along with the air, whereby the .air will be delivered, at

substantially the initial pressure and at the temperature of, say, 50 degrees, in-a fully saturatedcondition, to the pipe 10. Thence the air will travel to the lower head 12 of counter-current apparatus and up through the tubes 16 of the counter current apparatus. In the passage of the air through the tubes it will absorb heat from the descending currents of air around'the pipes so as to reduce thetemperature thereof to the extent of, sayrlO degrees, a. e. from 85 degreesjto .7 5.degrees,such as has been above-referred to. In; taking on this heat the temperature of air: rising through the tubes will be raised from, say, 50 degrees to, say, 70ldegrees', so that it will be delivered to the delivery ipe19 at 70 degrees temperature. After leavingt-he dew-point cooler, however, the amount of moisture therein will remain fixed and as the apparatusis' designed for the purpose of determining the quantityhfmoisture contained inthe air regardless" of its temperature, this rise of temperature will be immaterial; in fact it will be advantageousbecause in the final disposition" of the air the temperature isgen erally raised to a considerably higher degree,

moisture being carefully excluded, however,

so as to retain the moisture content uniform.

From the foregoing it will be apparent that a considerable economy of operation is obtained by use of this process. The cooling in the fore-cooler is quite inexpensive because it is accomplished by water from natural or inexpensive sources, and in any event it is a reduction in temperature only down to a point not lower than ordinary atmospheric temperatures. current apparatus a considerable saving is effected in the quantity of artificially cooled water necessary to be employed in the dewpoint cooler, because of the reduction of the temperature, during its passage through the counter-current apparatus, of the air to be cooled, by reason of the interchange of heat units therefrom to the air which has been cooled, and the temperatureof which, once the moisture content thereof has been determined, is no longer material. It will be uhderstood that it is necessary in the work for which this apparatus Was designed to carry the temperature of the air down below the normal atmospheric temperature in order to bring it to the point wherein the air when fully saturated will contain the required amount of moisture and no more.

It will of course be understood that in winter, for instance, when the water sup plied to the fore-cooler is at a sufficiently low temperature, it may not be necessary to introduce artificially cooled water in the dew-point cooler at all, and in this case the I supply pipe 20 for the dew-point cooler may be closed and the air simpl caused to circulate therethrough. By this means the apparatus may be used under all conditions without substantial change, the amount of artificiall cooled water supplied to the dewpoint cool er varying from nothing up to the extent required to produce the pro er tem-' perature at the delivery end thereo In reciting the. foregoing temperatures and pressures it will of course be understood that they are merely used for purposes of illustration and that they may and will vary largely under working conditions. They will of course vary for many reasons and from many causes, among which are the temperatures of the water supplied,the temperature of the incoming'air, the temperature required for the outgoing air, and variations in efficiency of the apparatus due to the relative sizes and construction of the parts and the more or less efiicient insular.

.deed so far as the apparatus is concerned,

the particular form thereof is immaterial, the novel feature of my invention so far as herein described and claimed, being the uti- In the use of the counter-' lization of the finally cooled air for absorbing heat from air at a point intermediate the preliminary and final cooling stages.

I claim- 1. The herein described process which comprises the exposure of a current of incoming air to the influence of a comparatively cool counter air current, then subjecting said incoming air current to the action of a previously refrigerated liquid, then subjecting the said air thus cooled to the influence of the current of incoming air and conducting it to the place of use.

2. The herein described process -which comprises the compression of air, then exposing the said compressed air to the influence of a comparatively cool counter air current, then subjecting said compressed air to v-iously refrigerated liquid, then subjecting a the said air thus cooled to the influence of the current of incoming air and conducting it to the place of use.

4. The herein described process which comprises first the compression of air, then subjectin said compressed air to the action of a liquid having substantially the normal atmospheric temperature, then exposing the compressed air to the influence of a comparatively cool counter air current, then subpreviously refrigerated liquid, then subjecting the compressed air thus cooled to the influence of the current of incoming 'air and conducting it to the place of use.

'5.- The herein described process which comprises the exposure of a current of incoming air to the influence of a comparatively cool counter air current, then subjecting said incoming aircurrent to the acti'on of a previously refrigerated liquid so that it is cooled to its dew point at the desired degree below atmospheric'pressure and then subjecting the said air thus cooled to the influence of the current of incoming air and conducting it to the place of use.

6. The herein described process which comprises first the compression of air, then the exposure of said compressed air to the influence of a comparatively cool counter air current, then subjecting sa1d compressed air to the action of a previously refrigerated liquid so that it is cooled to its dew point at -jecting the compressed air to the action of a i "thus .cooled to the influence of the current of incoming air and "conducting it to the place of use. p i

7. The herein described process which comprises the vsubjection of an incoming air current to the action of a liquid having substantially the normal atmospheric temperature, then conducting said incoming air current in one direction past a comparatively cool counter current traveling in the reverse direction, then subjecting said incoming air current to the action of a previously refrigerated liquid and then subjecting the said air thus cooled to the influence of the current of incoming air and conducting it to the place of use.

8. The herein described process Which scribing Witnesses.

consists in first compressing the air, then subjecting the compressed air to the action of a liquid having'approXi-mately the nor mal atmospheric temperature, then conducting said compressed air in one direction past a comparatively cool air current traveling in the opposite direction, then subjecting said compressed air current to the action of a previously refrigerated liquid and then subjecting the said air thus cooled to. the influ ence of the current of incoming compressed air and conducting it to the place of use.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto signed my name in the presence of two sub- JOEL IRVINE LYLE. Witnesses I T. A. WEAGER, K. BERENSMANN. 

